Friday, June 24, 2005

IBM Moving 14,000 Jobs to India

IBM is planning to expand its workforce in India by 14,000, despite announcing intentions to cut 13,000 jobs in the United States and Europe. The move, which was disclosed in an internal company memo, highlights a growing trend by tech firms to cut down on costs by hiring low-wage workers.

The memo, dated April 2005 and posted on the Web site of the Washington Alliance of Technology Workers (WashTech), indicates IBM's Indian workforce will rise from 24,150 in 2004 to 38,196 employees in 2005. IBM would not comment on the report, but WashTech president Marcus Courtney told the New York Times, "IBM is really pushing this offshore outsourcing to relentlessly cut costs and to export skilled jobs abroad."